JPH08156279A - Ink supply connection member - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain an ink supply connection member preventing dripping of ink caused by loading/unloading of an ink cartridge, having a good appearance, and preventing leakage of ink. CONSTITUTION: In an ink supply connection member 7 with an ink cartridge 14 unloaded, an ink-receiving part 9 surrounds at least a part of an ink- introducing part 8, and an open part of the ink-receiving part 9 having an approximately U-shaped cross section is disposed opposedly to the ink cartridge 14. On the other hand, as the ink cartridge 14 is loaded, the peripheral edge part of the ink-receiving part 9 is reversely deformed. When the ink cartridge 14 is completely loaded, the inside of the ink-receiving part 9 is fitted into an ink supply port to be inserted into the ink cartridge 14. The ink supply port is sealed with an inner peripheral surface 9a of the reversed peripheral edge part.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink supply connecting member for connecting an ink cartridge for supplying ink to a head holder having a recording head for ejecting ink.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional printing apparatus, an ink supply source for supplying ink to a recording head for printing on a recording medium is provided separately, and the ink supply source is replaced when the ink runs out. It is generally configured to be possible. Then, the recording head and the ink supply source are connected by an ink supply system including a supply pipe and the like.

In the conventional ink supply system, there is an ink supply connecting member 4 as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, and the ink supply connecting member 4 is made of rubber, synthetic resin or the like.
It is provided on the head holder 2 side where the recording head 1 is disposed. The ink supply connecting member 4 is arranged so as to cover the ink supply path 2a communicating with the recording head 1, has an opening communicating with the end of the ink supply path 2a, and has a porous body at the opening. 6 are provided. When the ink cartridge 14 is attached, the ink supply connecting member 4
The outer periphery of the ink supply port 14a of the ink cartridge 14
And the absorbent body 15 in the ink cartridge 14 is compressed by the porous body 6 while the ink is taken in and the ink is supplied to the recording head 1.

[0004]

However, as described above, the head holder 2 and the ink cartridge 1 are arranged.
In the ink ejecting apparatus in which the ink cartridge 4 is separable, when the ink cartridge 14 is removed from the head holder 2, the ink 20 is attached to the outer circumference of the fitted ink supply connecting member 4, and the appearance is not good. Further, the ink adhering to the outer periphery flows out and contaminates the surroundings, and the vicinity of the ink supply connecting member 4 and the head holder 2 are always soiled (see FIG. 6).

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems. When the ink cartridge is attached or detached, stains due to ink dripping do not occur, and the appearance is good even when the ink cartridge is detached. An object of the present invention is to provide a highly reliable ink supply connecting member that does not leak ink even when a cartridge is mounted.

[0006]

To achieve this object, an ink supply connecting member of the present invention comprises a head holder having a recording head for ejecting ink, and an ink supply port for supplying ink to the recording head. And a detachable ink cartridge having
Further, an ink introducing portion having an ink introducing port for introducing ink to the recording head, which can be inserted into the ink cartridge from the ink supplying port, and at least a part of the ink introducing portion is surrounded, and its sectional shape is Is substantially U-shaped, and its opening is provided so as to face the ink cartridge. When the ink cartridge is attached, the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge is inverted and deformed. An ink receiving portion is provided, the inner portion of which fits into the ink supply port, enters the ink cartridge, and seals the ink supply port by the inverted inner peripheral surface of the peripheral portion.

It should be noted that the ink cartridge has an ink absorber impregnated with the ink, and the ink introducing portion is located inside the ink cartridge from the ink supply port when the ink cartridge is mounted. The ink absorber provided inside the ink cartridge may be compressed to compress.

A porous body may be provided at the tip of the ink introduction port of the ink introduction section.

[0009]

In the ink supply connecting member according to the first aspect of the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the head holder, the ink introducing portion is inserted from the ink supply port and the ink introducing portion is inserted into the ink introducing portion. The ink in the cartridge is introduced into the recording head from the ink introduction port provided. At this time, the peripheral edge of the ink receiving portion is inverted and deformed as the ink cartridge is mounted, and the inner portion of the ink receiving portion fits into the ink supply port and enters the ink cartridge. The ink supply port is sealed by the peripheral surface. Therefore, since the inner peripheral surface of the ink receiving portion is brought into close contact with the ink supply port over a wide area, ink leakage does not occur at the connecting portion. Further, when the ink cartridge is removed, the ink receiving portion surrounds at least a part of the ink introducing portion by its restoring force, and its cross-sectional shape is a substantially U-shape, and its opening is It deforms so as to face the ink cartridge.

Therefore, the ink adhering to the vicinity of the ink introducing portion is received by the inner peripheral surface thereof, and ink dripping or ink leakage does not occur in other portions. Further, the ink receiving portion covers a part of the ink introducing portion, does not expose the ink stain of the ink introducing portion to the surface, and the appearance is improved.

In the ink supply connecting member according to the second aspect, the ink absorber impregnated with the ink is compressed by the ink introducing portion. Therefore, the density of the ink absorber in the vicinity of the ink introduction part becomes high, and the ink impregnated in the ink absorber is easily taken into the ink introduction part by the capillary force.

In the ink supply connection member according to the third aspect, when the ink cartridge is mounted on the head holder, the ink absorber is impregnated with the porous body provided at the tip of the ink introduction port of the ink introduction section. The ejected ink is taken in, and the ink is easily introduced into the ink introduction port.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The same members as those in the conventional technique are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof is omitted.

First, the construction of a recording apparatus provided with the ink supply connecting member 7 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. A platen 10 is rotatably provided in the printer housing 12 in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3, and a guide shaft 20 is provided along the platen 10. Its guide shaft 2
A carriage 16 is slidably mounted on the carriage 0, and a belt 26 is mounted on the carriage 16. The belt 26 is looped around the idle pulley 24 and the drive pulley 22. The drive pulley 22 is rotated by the drive motor 28, and the rotation of the drive pulley 22 moves the carriage 16 along the guide shaft 20 via the belt 26 in the direction of arrow B in FIG. A head holder 2 is mounted on the carriage 16 so as to face the platen 10, and an ink cartridge 14 containing ink for printing is placed on the head holder 2 and fixed to the head holder 2. Ink is supplied to the recording head 1. The ink cartridge 14 can be attached to and detached from the head holder 2.

The printing paper 32 is shown in FIG.
It is inserted into the housing 12 in the direction of the middle arrow C, conveyed in the direction of the arrow D along the platen 10, and discharged from the housing 12 of the printer. When the printing paper 32 is conveyed to the platen 10, the recording head 1 fixed to the head holder 2 ejects ink as the carriage 16 moves, whereby desired data is printed.

The recording head 1 is fixed to the head holder 2, and as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the head holder 2 is integrally formed with an ink supply path 2a for conveying ink to the recording head 1. The ink supply connection member 7 is arranged so as to cover the end of the ink supply path 2a. The ink supply connecting member 7 is made of rubber, resin, or the like and has appropriate elasticity. Further, the ink supply connecting member 7 preferably has sufficient resistance to the ink used.

The ink supply connection member 7 has an ink supply port 1
An ink introducing portion 8 that can be inserted into the ink cartridge 14 from 4a and an ink receiving portion 9 that is provided so as to surround the ink introducing portion 8 are provided. Further, the ink introducing section 8 is provided with the recording head 1 via the ink supply path 2a.
Has an ink introduction port for introducing ink into the ink cartridge, and the porous body 6 is arranged at the end of the ink introduction port on the ink cartridge 14 mounting side (see FIG. 1). On the other hand, the ink receiving portion 9 is formed so as to have flexibility so that its shape can be easily changed when a pressing force is applied, and when the pressing force is removed, the ink receiving portion 9 quickly returns to its original shape. It is formed to have sufficient stability. In the ink supply connection member 7 in this embodiment, the ink introducing portion 8 and the ink receiving portion 9 are integrally formed.

Continuing the explanation in more detail, when the ink cartridge 14 is not attached to the head holder 2, the ink receiving portion 9 has a substantially U-shaped cross section, and the opening thereof is the same as the ink cartridge 14. The ink introducing portion 8 is surrounded so as to face each other. Further, the peripheral edge of the opening of the ink receiving portion 9 is provided at the ink supply port 14 of the ink cartridge 14.
It has a diameter sufficiently larger than the diameter of a.

When the ink cartridge 14 is mounted, the ink supply connecting member 7 first pushes the ink receiving portion 9 against the peripheral edge portion of the ink supply port 14a of the ink cartridge 14, so that the peripheral edge of the ink receiving portion 9 is first detected. The part reverses and deforms. When the ink is further pressed, the inner portions of the ink introducing portion 8 and the ink receiving portion 9 that has been reversed and deformed are the ink supply ports 14.
It fits into a and goes into the ink cartridge 14. When the ink cartridge 14 is completely attached, the ink supply port 14a is sealed by the inner peripheral surface of the inverted peripheral edge of the ink receiving portion 9. In particular, since the ink receiving portion 9 has a flexibility to reversely deform and tries to return to its original shape by the restoring force, the peripheral edge of the ink receiving portion 9 is attached to the peripheral edge portion of the ink supply port 14a which applies the pressing force. The inner peripheral surface 9a of the portion is in wide contact. Therefore, at the connecting portion between the head holder 2 and the ink cartridge 14,
Ink leakage is less likely to occur.

Further, the ink introducing section 8 and the ink receiving section 9
The inner part of the inside of the ink cartridge 14 enters the ink cartridge 14, and the porous body 6 and the inner peripheral surface 9a of the receiving portion compress the absorber 15 housed in the ink cartridge 14. When compressed, the density of the absorber 15 around the porous body 6 is increased, so that the capillary force works, and the action causes the ink contained in the absorber 15 to be collected in the porous body 6. Then, the ink is further guided from the porous body 6 to the ink supply path 2a (see FIG. 1).

Next, as shown in FIG. 2, when the ink cartridge 14 is removed, the ink receiving portion 9 of the ink supply connecting member 7 is reversed from the state of FIG. 1 and returns to the initial state again. At this time, the ink 20 is attached to the inner peripheral surface 9a of the ink receiving portion 9, but if it is a small amount, the ink 20 flows to the ink introducing portion 8 along the restored inner peripheral surface 9a and is porous. Since it is absorbed by the body 6, the ink supply connecting member 7 is kept clean without ink stains. Further, since the ink receiving portion 9 is bent in a U shape toward the peripheral edge thereof, even if a large amount of the ink 20 is attached,
The ink 20 is held by the inner peripheral surface 9a at the peripheral edge thereof, and ink dripping does not occur. Also, the ink receiving portion 9a
Since the ink is restored so as to cover the inner surface 9a and the ink introducing portion 8, ink stains are not noticeable.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, although the opening end of the ink receiving portion 9 of the above-described embodiment is formed substantially parallel to the mounting direction of the ink cartridge 14, the opening end is formed in the central axis direction in order to further improve the holding force of the ink 20. You may be introverted to.

Further, although the inner portion of the ink receiving portion 9a of the above-described embodiment is substantially perpendicular to the ink introducing portion 8, it may be a tapered surface that opens toward the ink cartridge 14 direction. Good.

Further, in the above embodiment, the tip end position of the porous body 6 and the position of the opening end of the ink receiving portion 9a are formed to be substantially equal, but the position of the opening end of the ink receiving portion 9a is changed. One may extend forward (toward the ink cartridge 14). This prevents the user from accidentally touching the porous body 6 and soiling his hands with ink.

Further, in the above embodiment, the ink supply connecting member 7 has the ink introducing portion 8 and the ink receiving portion 9 which are integrally formed by the same member. However, separate members are assembled into one member. But it's okay.

[0026]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the ink supply connecting member of the present invention, the ink receiving portion is provided, and the ink receiving portion is arranged so as to be inverted when the ink cartridge is attached and detached. Therefore, when replacing the ink cartridge, it is possible to cover up the part that becomes dirty with the ink and hide it. Further, since the ink attached to the ink supply connecting member is held by the inner peripheral surface of the ink receiving portion, it is possible to obtain the effect that ink dripping is unlikely to occur.

Further, when the ink cartridge is mounted, the inner peripheral surface of the ink receiving portion is in close contact with the ink supply port over a wide area, so that ink leakage does not occur.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where an ink cartridge is mounted on a head holder in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the ink cartridge removed from the head holder according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an overall view of a printer unit.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of an ink supply connecting member of a head holder and an ink cartridge in a conventional example.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an ink cartridge is mounted on a head holder in a conventional example.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which an ink cartridge is removed from a head holder in a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 head holder 6 porous body 7 ink supply connecting member 9 ink receiving portion 9a inner peripheral surface of ink receiving portion 14 ink cartridge 14a ink supply port 15 absorber 20 ink

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An ink supply connection member for connecting a head holder having a recording head for ejecting ink and a detachable ink cartridge having an ink supply port for supplying ink to the recording head, to each other. An ink introduction part having an ink introduction port for introducing ink to the recording head, the ink introduction part being insertable into the ink cartridge from the ink supply port, and surrounding at least a part of the ink introduction part, and its cross-sectional shape being substantially U-shaped. The opening is provided so as to face the ink cartridge, and when the ink cartridge is attached or detached, the peripheral portion of the ink cartridge is inverted and deformed. Part fits into the ink supply port and enters the ink cartridge, and the inner peripheral surface of the inverted peripheral part causes the ink An ink supply connecting member characterized by comprising an ink receiving portion for sealing the supply opening. 2. The ink cartridge has an ink absorber that is impregnated with the ink, and the ink introducing portion is located inside the ink cartridge from the ink supply port when the ink cartridge is mounted. The ink supply connecting member according to claim 1, wherein the ink supply connecting member is inserted and compresses the ink absorber provided in the ink cartridge. 3. The ink supply connection member according to claim 1, wherein a porous body is provided at the tip of the ink introduction port of the ink introduction section.